Recoil controlling device



1964 c. L. ASHBROOK ETAL 3,152,510

RECOIL CONTROLLING DEVICE Filed May 1, 1962 United States Patent3,152,510 RECGEL CGNTRULLTNG DEVHE Ciitford L. Ashhroolr, 5027 CheenaSt., and Wilson G. Wing, 33 E. Rivercrest Drive, both of Houston, Tex.Filed May 1, 1962, Ser. No. 191,513 1 Claim. (Ci. 89-14) This inventionrelates to recoil controlling devices or muzzle brakes adapted forattachment to gun barrels and particularly to a gas inertia controllerparticularly adapted for use with rifles, pistols, shotguns and similarsmall arms and which is designed to check the energy of gun recoil byutilizing the gases generated on the firing thereof. It is acontinuation-in-part of our application Serial No. 118,440, filed June20, 1961, which is in turn a continuation-impart of our applicationSerial No. 46,937, filed August 2, 1960.

A wide variety of devices have previously been proposed for the purposesof controlling the recoil of the firearm. In the usual device, some typeof means is provided to divert the blast of gases radially of thelongitudinal axis of the gun barrel, this change in direction of thegases creating forces which are utilized to overcome the recoil due tothe rearward reaction which results from the generation of the gases forpropulsion of the missile upon firing of the gun. While certain of theprior art muzzle brake devices have reduced recoil somewhat, theresulting deafening increase in noise due to the use of such devicescauses far greater discomfort to the marksman such that it is completelyinadequate compensation for the advantages as obtained in recoilreduction.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a novel recoilcontrolling device suitable for use with firearms in which the recoil iscontrolled in a manner that it does not raise but rather diminishes theresultant noise level.

Another object of the invention is to provide an im proved and reliablerecoil controlling device capable of simple manufacture and which is ofsimple but rigid construction.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a novel and improvedrecoil controlling device which improves the accuracy of the firearmwith which it is used.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel and improvedrecoil controlling device for a firearm which reduces the intensity ofthe flash produced by the firearm.

The gas inertia controller of the invention is adapted for use with afirearm having a predetermined bore terminating at a muzzle to beattached by suitable means to the muzzle end of the cooperating firearm.It comprises a casing having a vertical recoil plate portion with an endwall portion spaced therebeyond at the front end thereof. The casingdefines two chambers within it, a generally conical recoil controlchamber of increasing cross-sectional area from the muzzle of theassociated firearm to the recoil plate, with the conical walls of theconical chamber diverging from their axis, being about equal to the borediameter at their smaller end, terminating at the recoil plate, and acylindrical chamber therebeyond terminating at the end Wall. The recoilplate, which forms the front wall of the conical chamber and the rearwall of the cylindrical chamber, is spaced from the muzzle at leastabout three times the diameter of the said bore. It is disposedsubstantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the firearmbore and has an aperture therein aligned with the bore which functionsas a passageway for the bullet, of a length preferably at least aboutequal to the diameter of the bore, and of a diameter slightly greaterthan the bore. The end wall, which forms the front wall of thecylindrical chamber is spaced from the recoil plate by about twice thebore diameter. It is also substantially perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of the bore and has a bullet aperture therein. Theinner diameter of the wall of the cylindrical chamber is at least abouttwice and more preferably about three to four times the diameter of thefirearm bore. Positioned in the annular wall of the conical chamber area plurality of radially disposed ports. These ports may representupwards of 25-50% of the total conical wall area of the chamberdepending in part on the quantity of gas that is available for use inthe device. There are no openings in the wall of the cylindricalchamber, so that such is enclosed except for the bullet apertures in itsend walls.

We have found it important to control gas flow in order that the soundproduced upon firing be reduced as to the operator of the firearm. Thismay be provided by the forward cylindrical chamber, and be aided as wellby providing, immediately behind each port, an outwardly extendingbaffie member or rib having a forward lip portion aligned with the rearedge of the associated port.

With this arrangement, when the gun is fired the slug of air in thebarrel is expelled ahead of the bullet or other missile and passesthrough the two chambers. The expanding gases generated by the explosionof the charge, behind the bullet, which accelerate the bullet tosupersonic velocity (frequently in the order of 3,000 feet per second asit leaves the muzzle), are forcedinto the conical chamber of the gasinertia controller device. These gases, which have tremendous forwardvelocity as they enter the chamber, impinge on the recoil plate but areprevented from passing through the exit aperture in the plate because ofthe bullet therein. Hence a substantial portion is reflected backward,creating a forward force on the firearm assembly which counteracts therearward force exerted on the firearm due to the explosion of thecharge. This action alone substantially reduces the recoil of theweapon. This initial buildup in pressure, in the area the bullet entersas it leaves the muzzle, is believed to enable the bullet to morerapidly acquire spin stabilization and reduces the yawing of the bullet,thus resulting in increased accuracy. Shortly after the initial contactof the gases with the plate there is an abrupt buildup in pressureduring the time (in the order of 35 microseconds) that the bullet ispassing through the exit aperture and the gases are sharply reflectedfrom the recoil plate during this interval. This gas pressure builduptime is accurately controlled by reason of the length of the longaperture passageway. The conical chamber is arranged so that as thegases are reflected backwards they are in part ported to the atmosphereand in part compressed as they move in a direction countercurrent to thegas components following the bullet. This countercurrent action acts toreduce the energy in the following gases and the tapered configurationof the chamber tends to increase the effectiveness of thiscountercurrent action due to its compressing effect. As these reflectedgases pass the radially disposed ports they are gradually expelledoutwardly generally radially but slightly forwardly to reduce the noisetransmitted to the operator, as is determined by the axes of the portsand their baffles. The pressure in the chamber is further reduced assoon as the bullet leaves the exit aperture in the recoil plate asanother discharge port into the forward, cylindrical chamber is thenprovided. The rate of discharge of gases through the aperture of therecoil plate is reduced, however, by virtue of the bullet blocking theaperture in the end plate during its passage therethrough. This providesanimportant and substantial decrease in sound. After the bullet clearsthe end plate, the entire release of gas occurs quite rapidly. Thissuccessive discharge of gases from the two successive chambers, oneported and one enclosed, over a comparatively extended period of timereduces the magnitude of sound and also the temperature of the gases,which in turn tends to reduce the volume of gas by cooling, so that theflash is sharply reduced. The abrupt changes in direction of movement ofportions of the gases caused by the bathing effects of the ports of theconical chamber believed to create small shock waves which tend to breakup the larger shock waves created by the initial contact of the gaseswith the recoil plate and thus serve to further reduce the amount ofnoise generated in this recoil controlling operation, while the secondchamber can effectively operate as a temporary compression chamber.

The gas inertia controlling device of the invention thus providescontrol of the gases generated as a result of the firing of the weaponso that the tremendous pressure built up is dissipated over asubstantially greater period and the maximum magnitude of pressure asreleased to the atmosphere is much less than values resulting from theuse of prior art devices. Thus the noise generated as a result of theuse of this recoil controlling device which is a small fraction of thenoise generated by the heretofore utilized types of muzzle brake devicesand the resultant increased accuracy of the weapon are marked additionalimprovements over the prior art devices. When used with a shotgun, theshot pattern distribution is much improved, both as to pattern size anduniformity of the shot distribution in the pattern.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be seen as thefollowing description of a preferred embodiment thereof progresses inconjunction with the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top view of a gas inertia controller device according to theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional elevational view of the device shown inFIG. 1 taken on the line 22 thereof;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the controller device taken along the line3-3 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the device taken along the line 44 of FIG.3.

With reference to the drawing there is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 the muzzleend of a rifle or shotgun barrel it) on which is mounted one embodimentof the gas inertia controller device in accordance with the invention.This device is secured to the necked down end of the barrel by silversolder or other suitable welltnown means. The chambers of the controllerdevice are defined by a casing 14 having a plurality of ports 16 thereindisposed in a single annular row. Positioned immediately to the rear ofthe row of ports is an outer ridge 18. Thus the controller device 12comprises an annular conical interior wall 24- and cylindrical wall ofcasing 14 with a recoil plate 26 and an end plate 36 both disposed asvertical surfaces. The recoil plate 26 is spaced about five times thebore diameter from the muzzle end, while the end plate 36 is spacedabout twice the bore diameter from the recoil plate 26. The recoil plateis of substantial thickness for a cylindrical passageway 23 of lengthequal to the bore which permits blocking by the bullet when the rifle isfired. The annular casing surface 24 is tapered rearwardly at an angleof 17 to the longitudinal axis of the controller device (which isaligned with the axis of the rifle barrel) from the recoil plate 26 tothe rearwardly extending cylindrical portion 12 which is arranged tocontact and to be secured to the rifle barrel 10.

The conical chamber defined by conical surface 24 has two side gasdischarge ports 16 therein arranged in an annular row. They are of alongitudinal dimension about equal to bore diameter, and have aperipheral dimension of about 120 between upper web 32 and lower web 34.Each cylindrical port is disposed in a radial direction to dischargegases outwardly from the interior of the chamber defined by conicalsurface 24. Disposed immediately to the rear of the row of ports is abaffle ridge 18 which in combination with the recoil plate 26 tends toprovide an effective somewhat forward discharge of gases. The total portarea is about 30% of the conical surface area of the conical chamber.

The conical chamber portion of the casing 14 is supported by webs 32, 34and includes the cylindrical inner wall 30 and the transverse end wallas. The annular cylindrical casing surface 3% is of a diameter at leastabout twice the bore diameter and more preferably about three to fourtimes the bore diameter as shown. Its length is preferably about twicethe bore diameter. The end plate 36 has a cylindrical bullet passageway38 therein of a diameter but slightly larger than the bore diameter sothat it will remain substantially closed when a bullet is passingtherethrough.

Preferably, surrounding the ports 16 is a ring member ll mounted foradjustable positioning on casing 14, such member having a port 42 about270 degrees in extent and of a length at least as great as that of theports. Ring member 40 has a tight enough frictional fit so that it willbe maintained in its adjusted position, conventionally with its web 44upwards as shown in the drawings.

In operation, the explosion of the charge generates gases which forcethe slug of air in front of the bullet and the bullet from the barrel.The bullet emerges from the barrel of the firearm into a zone ofintermediate pressure, rather than a zone of substantially zero pressureas is the case where no gas inertia controller is utilized, and thebullet becomes spin stabilized much more rapidly. A portion of theseexpelled gases precedes and follows the bullet through the aperture 28in the recoil plate 26 but the majority of the gases form an expandingshock front which impinges on the vertical recoil plate surface. Uponcontact these cases are violently reflected rearwardly into the conicalchamber as a multitude of shock waves. This rapid change in direction ofthe mass of gases breaks the shock front and absorbs a portion of therecoil energy of the firearm so that the rearward force on the gunbarrel is markedly reduced. Since the angle of incidence of the gasblast on the recoil plate is equal to the angle of reflection the highvelocity gases are reflected back at varying angles on the variousportions of the conical chamber wall for ultimate expulsion through theports. However at each point of contact with the chamber wall there isfurther reflection which reduces the magnitude of the shock wave andacts so that the force is dissipated over a longer period of time.Further, the gases moving rearwardly are somewhat compressed and areforced toward the main stream of gases to act thereon in countercurrentaction and reduce the energy therein. As the bullet moves into theaperture 28 there is a significant increase of pressure in thecontroller chamber as a port of substantial area is then closed. As thebullet leaves the recoil plate aperture 28 and passes into end plateaperture 38, pressure will build up in the enclosed cylindrical chamberand so further delay the release of gases, and hence further reduce thenoise and recoil. During the entire operation, however, gases aregradually but continually being released through the ports 16. Due tothe slight forward gas discharge from the ports in the chamber wall thegases are controlledly expelled in a direction away from the operatorand at a rate so that the noise created is much reduced. In fact, themagnitude of the sensed noise when the gas inertia controller is used isless than that sensed without it due to the extended period of gasrelease and to the baffling of the several shock fronts. Further, due tothe comparatively long passageways through which the gases are ported,upon release they are not luminous so that the device has the additionaladvantage of being a flash reducer. The ring member permits adjustmentfor bullet spin compensation, by turning it to the side as desired.Also, for ground effect compensation, it may be turned over so that itsweb 44 is downward.

These devices render themselves readily to mass production as they arepreferably precision cast and a hole is drilled in the recoil and endplates to a suitable dimension somewhat more than the caliber of theweapon on which the device is to be utilized. The length of the exitpassageway may be adjusted in accordance with the duration of pressurebuildup desired and the percentage of port area in the conical chambermay be varied so that the desired rate of gas release is provided. Asthe gases are directed forwardly, they do not have any substantialcomponents acting in a rearwardly direction towards the marksman andthus the magnitude of the noise produced by the weapon as sensed by themarksman is significantly reduced. Other modifications of the disclosedstructures within the spirit and score of the invention will be obviousto those having ordinary skill in the art. Therefore while a preferredembodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it will beunderstood that the invention is not intended to be limited thereto orto details thereof and departures may be made therefrom within thespirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claim.

What is claimed is:

A gas inertia controller adapted for attachment to the muzzle end of afirearm comprising a generally annular body having a recoil plateportion of substantial thickness and an end plate portion spaced fromsaid recoil plate, said plates being disposed perpendicularly to thelongitudinal axis of said body, a passageway through said body adaptedto be positioned in axial alignment with the barrel of the firearm forthe passage therethrough of the bullet and the gases expelled from themuzzle upon explosion of the charge, said passageway being defined by arear cylindrical portion adapted to be secured to the muzzle end of saidfirearm, a cylindrical portion disposed in said recoil plate having adiameter sufficient to permit free passage of the bullet therethroughbut being dimensioned such that the recoil plate cylindrical portion issubstantially closed to the flow of gases therethrough during theinterval that the bullet is in said recoil plate cylindrical portion, acylindrical portion disposed in said end plate portion having a diametersuflicient to permit free passage of the bullet therethrough but beingdimensioned such that the end plate is substantially closed to the flowof gases therethrough during the interval that the bullet is in said endplate portion, an enclosed conical chamber intermediate said rear andrecoil plate portions, the interior Wall of said conical chamber beingdisposed at an angle to said longitudinal axis so that thecross-sectional area of the chamber increases at a substantially uniformrate from said rear portion to said recoil plate, said chamber beingenclosed throughout its length and having at its end adjacent saidrecoil plate peripheral slot means extending through the wall of saidchamber and for a minor proportion of the length of said conical chamberalong said axis, and an enclosed cylindrical chamber intermediate saidrecoil plate and end plate portions, such that gases expelled from thefirearm muzzle upon explosion of the charge tend to impinge first onsaid recoil plate and to be reflected therefrom back into said conicalchamber and then to be released into said enclosed chamber for gradualrelease over a significant period of time through said slot means in arecoil controlling operation, said gases being bafiled and reflectedwithin said conical chamber and during the release therefrom andcompressed in said enclosed chamber so that the resultant noise level issubstantially reduced.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS827,259 McClean July 31, 1906 1,429,619 Nelson Sept. 19, 1922 2,499,428Tiffany Mar. 7, 1950 2,558,200 Schmeling June 26, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS171,008 France Sept. 4, 1885

